Joseph E. Johnston

Joseph Eggleston Johnston (3 February 1807-21 March 1891) was a General in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War who had fought in the Seminole Wars and the Mexican-American War.

Biography
A classmate of Robert E. Lee at West Point, Joseph Johnston served in the Seminole Wars in the 1830s and the Mexican War in the 1840s, standing out as a commander at the storming of the fortress of Chapultepec in September 1847. He was newly appointed quartermaster-general of the army when the Civil War broke out. Resigning to join the Confederates, he led troops from Harpers Ferry to join the forces at Bull Run in July 1861, a move that contributed greatly to Confederate victory there. Commanding the Army of Northern Virginia in the Yorktown Peninsula in Spring 1862, Johnston fought a series of holding actions while withdrawing toward the Southern capital, Richmond. He was wounded counterattacking at Seven Pines in May and ceded command to Lee. On his recovery, he was given command of Confederate forces in the West. Failing to relieve Vicksburg with inadequate forces, he was sidelined after the fortress fell in July 1863.

Facing Sherman
Recalled to lead the demoralized Army of Tennessee in December, Johnston fought yet another skillful defensive campaign, falling back on Atlanta in the face of William T. Sherman's superior forces. He was fired by President Jefferson Davis in July 1864, but was reappointed one last time in February 1865, fighting at Bentonville before surrendering to Sherman in April.